Strive For Victory
by kathyyjane
Summary: Since the first moment the Skitters came to Earth, Hal Mason knew his life would never be the same. Follow his journey though a world full of war with his family and a certain blonde by his side.


**A few things to know before you start: All the characters are still alive. This will not follow the show's story line, but I might takes parts from the show and twist it around some. Characters are the same, with a few twists on my part. This is also going to be in Hal's POV; however, some parts will be narrated if needed. I hope you guys enjoy.**

* * *

"To Victory,

may it be swift,

may it be complete,

and may it be forever."

If you were to ask me two years ago if I believed in aliens, I would have laughed in your face. Back then, the thought of a world full of 6 legged aliens were nonexistent except in scary movies. Now, I can't even imagine a universe where I don't see one nearly every day. Before the Skitters came, I was just your typical high school student; going to school, playing in lacrosse games, arguing with my brothers, and pinning after the school hottie. Those memories, though only two years old, seem like a different life. I am not the same boy anymore. Instead of a lacrosse stick, I carry a gun. Instead of fighting with my brothers, I fight alongside of them. Instead of trying to get the attention of a jazz dancer, I try to get the attention of a warrior. At lot has changed in two years; more than I ever thought could be possible. But this is my life now; my crazy life as Hal Mason.

* * *

About every other week our leader, Colonel Weaver, sends a small group of us out to get more food and other supplies that are running low. These missions typically go smoothly, as long as we don't run into any Skitters. We haven't seen any action from our alien enemies in about a week; which however pleasant may be, is a little worrisome. It's just so weird to not even see one from a distance when on scouting missions. Our food retrieving team will be on the lookout for sure.

"Alright, I want Ben and Jimmy to ride ahead and scout the area of the mini market," my father, Tom, commanded us. My dad is the second in command of the Second Mass, and our leader in any missions we go on. "We will meet you boys at the gas station located a block away here on the map."

"Sounds like a plan," my little brother, Ben, told my father. It's been about a year since we rescued Ben from the Skitters and got his harnessed removed. Before the alien invasion, my relationship with Ben was never that great. I loved him, of course, but I always saw him as my bratty, nerdy younger brother. Our relationship still has its occasional struggles, but we are a lot closer now than ever before.

"Don't fight them if you do happen to see any. You come straight to the rendezvous place." I tell him with a serious tone of voice.

"Whatever you say, Dad," he says in a sarcastic voice, his eyes rolling.

"Listen to your brother, Ben. No matter what you see, even if there's only one Skitter, you come straight to me."

"Yes sir, I understand."

It's not that Dad and I have to tell Ben the rules before every mission. He's not stupid. He knows that fighting them without backup could have some serious consequences. We're just protective of him. He was taken from us for almost a whole year; and we never want that to happen again. Ben should be lucky we even let him come on missions.

"Tom," Weaver called walking over to our group, "I want you to take Pope on this mission."

"And why would you want me to do that?" He asked with his eyebrows raised. It's no secret that Dad and Pope hate each other.

"Because it's an order, so tell him the plan and bring us home some food."

"Yes sir," Tom replied, clearly biting his tongue to keep from saying some rather inappropriate words.

I watched Weaver walk away, leaving Dad to deal with Pope. In all honesty, I think the reason for putting the criminal on our mission was to get him out of the commander's hair. Pope has been bugging everyone lately, probably because he's been stuck at camp for a week, instead of out killing Skitters. After Dad got everyone on the same page for the mission, he gave Ben and Jimmy a nod and they road off to scout the area out.

"He'll be okay, you know," Maggie told me as she nudged my arm.

I smiled at her, "I know. I would just feel a whole lot better if it was me out there with him."

"Yeah, but who would have my back then?"

"That's very true. And with the way you fight, you need all the backup you can get," I teased her.

"Watch it mister," she warned me.

"Save the flirting for when you have a room," Pope told us as he shoved between us to walk ahead, pushing Maggie in the process.

"Don't touch me!" She yelled giving him a shove from behind. She didn't push real hard, but hard enough to make him trip and almost fall.

"You bitc-"

"HEY!" Tom yelled interrupting them, "both of you knock it off, or neither one of you is coming on this mission. Now shut up and get in the truck, were headed out."

I gave Maggie a comforting smile and hopped in the bed of the pickup truck. A part of me wants to yell at my old man for talking to Maggie that way, but I know he has her best interest at heart. There isn't room on any kind of missions for two people to be fighting. That's when someone gets hurt, or worst, killed.

I could tell Maggie was still upset about being pushed by Pope. They have a dark past together. One that I have heard most of, but I know there are still some things she hasn't told me about. Just thinking about how he could've hurt her makes a dark patch of anger run through my entire body. I care about Maggie so much, so much that I wish I could take away all of her past pains and protect her from any future ones.

I put my arm around Maggie, pulling her closer to me and whispered, "don't let that jerk get to you." She rested her head on my shoulder and I ran my fingers through her hair, in a comforting motion. We sat like that the rest of the ride, not talking, just enjoying being in each other's arms.

* * *

"Hal," Dad started, "I hope you're not mad at me for the way I spoke to Maggie earlier. I honestly only wanted to yell at Pope, but knew if I had done that, he'd throw a fit about me playing favorites."

"Don't worry Dad; I'm not mad at you. And neither is Maggie. We both understand."

"Good, cause I can't have my own son or his girlfriend mad at me on a mission."

"First of all, she's not my girlfriend. Second of all, I would have your back no matter what, old man."

"She's not your girlfriend yet?" He asked me with a 'are you serious' look.

I groaned and replied, "Can we discuss this later, and preferably when she isn't nearby." Dad laughed and that and nodded his head. It's true, though. Maggie and I are not dating. We have such a strong friendship and partnership. Yes, we flirt all the time, and I do have feelings for her, but I just don't know if it's a good idea to start something during this war. Especially with what happened to Karen, my old girlfriend.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of two motorcycles coming toward us. Ben and Jimmy were coming from scouting the area. We all walked to the side of the road to meet them. Our guns were ready just in case there was any Skitters or Mechs on their tail.

"Its all clear," we heard Jimmy calling to us as he neared.

"We didn't see any Skitters around the mini mart," Ben added.

"You saw nothing at all?" Pope asked, clearly skeptical. I have to admit I was starting to doubt our luck a little as well.

Ben was shaking his head, "We didn't see a thing. We circled around twice and even check a little further down. I didn't sense anything either."

"Alright guys," Tom addressed to the group, "this is a good thing. But I don't want anyone to leave their guard down. We're treating this as if we had seen some; quietly and quickly. Remember, as soon as you put your guard down, that's when something will happen. So guards stay up. Is that clear?"

We all give an understanding node and head back into the vehicles to go to the mini mart. Maggie and I had had found the market last week on a scouting mission. We had pulled over and peaked through the glass doors. It was one of the few grocery stores that hadn't been touched by other people. We were running extremely low on food back at camp, so it is critical we collect as much food as possible.

Dai pulls up the truck to the entrance, getting as close as possible to make a quick escape if needed. I jumped out of the back of the truck and take a deep breath, gripping my gun tightly in my hand. My father's words are playing on repeat in my head; don't let your guard down. I hope the rest of the team takes his order as seriously as I am. I glance over at Maggie and see her ready with her gun pulled forward. She is in warrior mode. I know she's listened to Dad, but for some reason, I just can't shake the feeling that something is wrong. Something is going to happen, I just have no idea what.

"Let's go," Tom tells us.

I watch as everyone enters the store, and with one final deep breath, I follow.

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**Hello to all you Falling Skies fans! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter to this story. Let me know in a review if you loved it, hated it, or just tolerated it. If there is anything you really want to see happen, let me know, and I'll see about incorporating it. Thanks for reading!**

**XOXO Kathy**


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